


Snowbound

by houdini74



Category: Schitt's Creek
Genre: M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-02-13
Updated: 2019-02-13
Packaged: 2019-10-27 18:30:41
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 5,800
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17772023
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/houdini74/pseuds/houdini74
Summary: Patrick and David get snowed in at the Motel and Patrick learns some things about David's past.





	Snowbound

**TUESDAY**

It started snowing in the afternoon. 

Patrick, predictably, loved the snow. “Maybe it will get cold enough that we could go skating on the lake. Have you ever been skating?”

From across the store where he was restocking the bath salts, David looked like he’d suggested they spend the day digging ditches. “Nooooo.”

“Or sledding,” Patrick continued, “Surely you’ve been sledding before.”

“Cancun doesn’t have very many sleds,” David responded. “Until we moved here, my winter plans involved staying as far away from snow as possible.”

By the time they were ready to close for the day, the big fluffy flakes were coming down hard and everything was covered in an inch of snow. They locked up the store and headed out to Patrick’s car. Halfway there, Patrick stopped and pulled David into his arms. They’d only been outside for a minute, but already they were both covered in a dusting of snow. 

Patrick tilted his head back and looked at the falling snow. “Look,” he said to David. “It’s beautiful.”

David followed Patrick’s gaze and for a moment they stood still as the snow fell around them. The flakes were huge, floating slowly to the ground. It seemed unnaturally quiet, no one was outside and the snow muted any remaining sounds. The snow reflected the light from streetlights, making the early evening seem brighter than usual. Smiling, David put his arms around Patrick’s neck and kissed him. 

“It’s really pretty, but I’m freezing my ass off. Can we go now?”

“C’mon David, where’s your sense of wonder? Haven’t you heard of suffering for beauty?”

“I’ll suffer just as much when I’m sitting inside knowing that it’s cold and snowy outside.”

“Mmmm. Are you staying over tonight?”

“If you’re willing to risk being snowed in with me?”

“Always.” Patrick returned David’s kiss and they headed for the car. It usually took about ten minutes to drive from the store to Patrick’s apartment but the snow had already made the roads slippery and it took twice as long. 

At the apartment, Patrick pulled a lasagna from the freezer and put it in the oven. He opened a bottle of wine and handed a glass to David. 

“Wanna curl up in front of the fire and watch a movie?” Patrick asked. “It’s your turn to pick.”

David turned on the TV and flipped through Netflix. “Ooo, they’ve added Dirty Dancing.”

Patrick shrugged agreeably, “Sure.” 

He’d come to appreciate some of the better romantic comedies that David loved and Dirty Dancing did have a great soundtrack. They finished their lasagne and watched Jennifer Grey and Patrick Swayze dance their way through their romance. David snuggled into Patrick’s arms, reaching to kiss him as the credits rolled. 

“How often do you think you’d have to go to the gym before you could lift me like that?” David asked.

“You’re taller that I am, I think you should lift me,” Patrick replied. “We could practice for the next Open Mic Night.”

“Hmm. Maybe you could just learn the song instead.”

“Deal.” 

Patrick ran his hand through David’s hair, enjoying the way it curled around his fingers. He felt David’s breathing change as David slipped his hand under Patrick’s shirt to stroke along his stomach. Patrick’s breath caught and he tilted David’s head back so that he could kiss him. 

“How about we dance our way to bed?”

“Can we be dirty when we get there?”

“Mmm hmm.” Patrick said as he took David by the hand and pulled him into the other room.

**WEDNESDAY**

The next morning, Patrick slipped out of bed to put the kettle on for tea and to set up the coffee maker for David. On his way to the kitchen, he stopped to look out the window. It had obviously snowed all night and it was still coming down. At least six inches of snow had fallen and everything was white.

When the tea and coffee were finished brewing, Patrick came back to bed, a mug in each hand. David had shifted into the middle of the bed, his head on Patrick’s pillow.

“Shove over.” Patrick set the mugs on the nightstand and tucked himself back under the covers. He was rewarded with a sleepy kiss from David and an arm wrapped around his waist.

“Are we snowed in?”

“Not yet, I think we’ll have to go into the store after all.”

“What good is winter if it won’t even let me stay home from work?” David pulled himself into a sitting position and Patrick handed him the cup of coffee. 

“Mmmm, the best part of staying here is having you bring me coffee in the morning.” David said.

“The best part?” Patrick replied, his eyebrows raised. “I can think of some other parts from last night that were pretty good.”

“Okay, the best non-sexy part.”

They lingered in bed for awhile before Patrick insisted that they get ready to go to work. When they were finally ready to leave, Patrick pulled his Canada Goose parka and his Sorel boots out of the closet. David was already dressed. In addition to his Ugg boots, he was wearing a thigh-length quilted down jacket that was made out of some sort of shiny black material. The upright collar on the jacket nearly obscured his eyes. David had wrapped the longest black scarf that Patrick had ever seen around his neck and one of the knit toques from the store completed his outfit. Not for the first time, Patrick looked at David and wondered how on earth they had ever managed to come together. 

Despite the snow, the day passed quickly. There weren’t too many people willing to brave the winter weather, but online orders kept them busy throughout the day. Patrick was quite proud of how they had built up the online part of their business over the past year. It helped to even out their revenue stream, particularly in the winter when there was less tourist traffic.

“We should order more scarves and toques from Mrs. Peterson, we’re almost out.”

“Especially if we get trapped here and we have to wear all of our remaining stock to stay warm,” David replied.

“It’s not that bad.”

Wordlessly, David pointed at the window. It was snowing even harder than it had been and it looked like another six inches had accumulated since they’d arrived that morning. 

“Huh. Maybe we should close early. I doubt we’re going to get too many more customers in this weather.”

After closing up the store, they headed to where Patrick’s car was parked in the small parking lot behind the store. 

“Oh good, the snowplow has been out,” Patrick began before stopping and staring at the mountain of snow that the plow had left behind his car.

“Should I go get Mrs. Peterson’s scarves?” David asked.

“Well, I don’t think we’re getting the car out, but we’re close enough to walk to the motel. I assume you’re okay with an extra roommate for the night?”

“That doesn’t sound like nearly as much fun as being snowed in at your apartment,” David replied. “But I’m told it’s a bad look to let your boyfriend freeze to death.”

Neither of them enjoyed the normally short walk from the store to the motel. The road had been plowed and there wasn’t any traffic, but the packed snow was uneven and slippery and they were both exhausted by the time they reached the motel.

David opened the door to his room, not in the mood to deal with Alexis. Happily, the room was empty and the adjoining door to his parent’s room was closed. 

After hanging up his coat and setting his bag by the door, David pulled out his phone to text Alexis.

 **4:32 pm Where are you?**  
4:32 pm At Ted’s  
**4:33 pm Stay there. Patrick and I are snowed in and we need your bed**  
4:33 pm Ew David  
4:34 pm Fine. Like I was going outside in this weather anyway  
4:36 pm But if you’re going to have sex, you better do it in your own bed!

Patrick threw his winter coat onto Alexis’ bed and sat down to remove his boots. Both David and Patrick were soaked from the knees down from wading through the deep snow in the motel parking lot. David rummaged around in his closet and held out an item of black clothing to Patrick. 

“See if these fit.”

Patrick unfolded the clothing apprehensively. They’d been together long enough for him to become acquainted with some of David’s more unique pieces of clothing and he wasn’t sure whether he’d rather sit in wet jeans instead of attempting to wear them. But when he looked at what David had given him he discovered a pair of almost ordinary looking designer jeans.

“What’s this? You’re passing up your chance to redo my department store style?”

“Your style works for you. Besides, you’d insist on wearing that fuzzy blue sweater, which would ruin the look anyway.”

“You love this sweater.”

“No, I love you in that sweater. That’s not the same thing.”

While they’d been talking, David had changed his own pants for another pair that looked identical to Patrick but were probably different in some subtle but important way. Patrick pulled off his wet jeans and draped them over the back of the chair. He was reaching for the jeans David had given him when the adjoining door to the senior Rose’s room burst open and Mrs. Rose stood in the doorway. He yelped and pulled the pants into his lap.

“Oh Alexis, is that you?”

Over time, Patrick had found it best to simply accept Mrs. Rose’s outfits. Today she was wearing thigh high lace-up boots with a six inch heel, a short leather skirt and black blouse that was accompanied by numerous bracelets and necklaces. Over top of the ensemble, in what Patrick assumed was an acknowledgement of the weather, was a floor length white wool cape. 

“Pat...rick dear, why aren’t you wearing any trousers?”

“David, if you’re going to plan an assignation, you really should remember to lock the door. You do remember what happened last time.”

Patrick raised an eyebrow at David at this reference. 

“Patrick and I got snowed in at the store and we had to walk to the motel so I was lending him some dry pants so that he doesn’t die of pneumonia. Can we help you with something?”

“Yes, I was looking for Alexis.”

“She’s staying at Ted’s. Since she’s not here, can you leave please?”

“Yes David, I will leave you boys to your afternoon delight.”

“Oh my god...never say that again.”

As the door closed behind Mrs. Rose, Patrick hurriedly pulled on David’s jeans, knowing that it could be a matter of moments before they might be interrupted again. They were a couple of inches too long and he rolled up the cuffs. David smirked at him, but didn’t say anything, instead putting his hands on Patrick’s shoulders and pulling him close.

“I like seeing you in my clothes,” he murmured in a low voice.

“If you’re going to say things like that, we really should lock that door,” Patrick replied. 

“Hmmm.” David put his hand behind Patrick’s head and leaned in to kiss him. He nipped gently at Patrick’s lower lip and Patrick’s lips parted for David’s tongue. Patrick returned David’s kiss urgently before pulling back to kiss along David’s jawline. The feel of the rough stubble beneath his lips was intoxicating.

“David…” Patrick began, his voice uneven. Just then, a loud knocking came from the outside door to their room. 

David closed his eyes and rested his forehead against Patrick’s for a brief moment before going to open the door. Stevie stood outside holding a bottle of wine in each hand.

“I heard you guys were trapped here and it looks like I’m not going to make it home tonight, so I brought some wine. I hope I’m not interrupting anything.”

“OK, why does everyone assume that we’re just in here having sex?” David demanded.

“Because they know you. And also because your boyfriend is blushing and can’t look me in the eye.”

Patrick took the wine from Stevie, searching David’s room until he turned up three mismatched coffee cups. He poured the wine and handed them around.

“Such an elegant presentation,” David said. “It’s just like being back at the Four Seasons in New York.”

Patrick lay back on Alexis’ bed while David and Stevie sat at the small table. He smiled as he listened to David describe the virtues of the Four Seasons in comparison to the Rosebud Motel while Stevie did her best to deflate his ego. 

It was nearly midnight before Stevie left for one of the empty rooms at the motel. It was still snowing and there was nearly eighteen inches on the ground now. It seemed unlikely that they were going to make it into work tomorrow or that any of the local businesses would be open. 

Behind him, David had moved the nightstand that was in between the two beds and was shoving the single beds together.

“Alexis is going to love this.”

“Don’t care. I’m not sleeping in separate beds like we’re roommates at boarding school.” 

**THURSDAY**

The next morning, Patrick woke to see brilliant sunlight streaming in the window. For a moment, he’d forgotten where he was until he saw David still asleep beside him. He crawled out of bed and went to look out the motel window. The sunshine and blue sky made him squint and he could see that nearly two feet of snow had fallen.

In bed behind him, David stretched and mumbled, “It’s too bright, close the curtains.”

Patrick leaned over and kissed him on the cheek. 

“Go back to sleep, today’s definitely a snow day.” Patrick considered crawling back under the covers with David, but he was feeling restless and needed to burn off some energy.

“I doubt Roland’s going to make it in, so I’m going to go help Stevie with the shoveling.” 

“Mmmm hmmm,” came the reply from the bed as David pulled the comforter over his head.

His jeans were dry so he pulled them on along with his parka, boots, and sunglasses and headed outside to find Stevie. Despite the snow, it was a beautiful day, not too cold and the sun made the snow sparkle.

He found Stevie clearing the sidewalk in front of the motel office. 

“Got an extra shovel?”

“In there,” Stevie gestured to the door behind her.

Opening the door, Patrick found himself in a motel room that had clearly been used as storage for quite some time. Looking at the bright red heart-shaped bed and the mirror on the ceiling, he could see why Stevie had chosen to stop renting the room. It definitely set a certain...tone for the motel. On the other side of the bed, he saw that most the space was taken up by numerous clothing racks that filled the back half of the room. Patrick stared at the racks of black and white clothing before the realization dawned on him.

“Stevie!”

“What?” Stevie poked her head around the door. 

Patrick pointed to the clothes. “Are these….”

“David’s? Yeah. He didn’t tell you?”

“I had no idea. I mean I knew he had a different outfit for literally every occasion, but…”

“Does it matter? I mean, you knew he had a thing for clothes from the beginning.”

“No. Yes.” Patrick pulled a sweater he’d never seen before off the rack to look at it more closely.

“Does it make it better or worse if I tell you that sweater is worth $500?”

“What?!” Patrick nearly dropped the sweater on the floor in his hurry to put it back on the rack. He ran his eyes over the collection of clothing, trying and failing to estimate its total value.

“He wasn’t joking about the closet space.”

“What closet space?” Stevie asked.

“When I got my place, we talked about moving in together, but David said he needed more closet space. I didn’t think he meant this much closet space.”

“Your boyfriend is high maintenance. It’s probably a good idea to take whatever he says and double it.”

“Yeah….” Patrick was still stunned by his discovery.

“Well, I’ve got a lot of snow to shovel. Are you going to stay here and play with David’s clothes or are you still offering to help?”

Patrick grabbed the extra shovel and followed Stevie out of the room. By eleven o’clock, they had cleared the snow from the motel’s walkway. Patrick brushed the snow off of the Rose’s car while Stevie uncovered her car in the motel’s parking lot. As they finished up, Bob pulled into the parking lot with his snowplow and began clearing the snow.

As they were putting the shovels back into the storage room, Patrick asked “Can I borrow the key to this room for a bit?”

“Sure, I’ve got a spare,” Stevie replied. “But I’ve got to warn you, working with a ceiling mirror is not as easy as it seems.”

“I’ll keep that in mind.” Ceiling mirrors aside, Patrick wasn’t sure why he wanted the key, but he felt like he’d learned something about David that he didn’t know before. He tucked the key into the pocket of his parka and headed back to David’s room.

Patrick opened the door to the motel room and stepped inside. David was still in bed, but he opened his eyes and smiled when Patrick came in. 

“I’m going to walk down to the store to make sure things are okay and to shovel the sidewalk,” Patrick said. 

“Okay,” said David, “I’ll see you when you get back.”

“Of course you will” Patrick replied, kissing David on the cheek.

When he got to the store, he unlocked the door and did a quick walk through before grabbing the shovel out of the backroom and starting on the front walk. He’d been working for a few minutes when he looked up to see Stevie coming towards him, a shovel in one hand.

“You helped me, it seems only fair that I return the favor.”

“That’s unusually kind of you,” Patrick replied.

“Being snowbound with Mr Rose is not going to end well, I needed a break,” Stevie admitted.

They shoveled in silence for awhile, finishing the sidewalk in short order.

“I should probably make a start on freeing my car,” Patrick sighed. “I’d love some help if you’re still feeling generous.”

Patrick’s car was a white mound completely covered in snow. Behind the car, the pile of snow from the snowplow was even bigger than Patrick remembered. With a groan, he grabbed the broom from inside the back door of the store and handed it to Stevie so that she could start brushing off the car.

After a moment, he stopped shoveling and asked “What was David like when he first came here?”

Stevie stopped sweeping off the car. “Are you sure you want to open that box?”

“I mean, the two of you got together, so you must have seen something in him then.” Patrick continued.

“You do know that I’m not really a portrait of good judgement when it comes to relationships?”

“Stevie…”

“This is about the clothes, isn’t it?”

“Sort of.” Patrick wasn’t sure why he was asking but something about seeing David’s clothes had made him wonder about the David Rose that had existed before he knew him.

“Okay, fine. All of the things you think are adorable about David,” Stevie rolled her eyes, “His vanity, his insecurity and drama, his selfishness, were…amplified by a factor of at least ten. He’s changed since he met you. He’s changed for you. It’s quite disgusting.”

Patrick grinned a little sheepishly as Stevie continued. “The clothes are both a set of armor and a lifeline to his past.”

“Hmmm.”

“You’re worried because he didn’t tell you about them, aren’t you?”

“A little, I guess.”

“I don’t think he was hiding them from you. I think he sees you as his armor now, more than the clothes.”

The question that had been nagging at Patrick since he first saw David’s clothes at the motel finally came to the surface.

“What…what do you think David would do if they got their money back?” He cleared his throat, suddenly afraid to look at Stevie.

“I wondered how long it would take you to ask that question,” Stevie paused for a moment. “You know David loves you, right?”

“Yes.” Patrick was certain of that but suddenly he found himself wondering if there might come a time when that wasn’t enough.

“What you probably don’t know is that they almost got out once before. It was maybe six months after they came here. And after David and I...well… you know. And after we’d decided it wasn’t going to work.”

“He asked me to go with him. To New York.” Stevie’s voice was very quiet. “Patrick, I think he was so lonely in his old life that he was desperate to hold onto the bit of friendship that we had. And what we had then was nothing compared to what you guys have now.”

“Honestly, I don’t know what he’d do if the money came back. But I do know that he wouldn’t do it without you.”

“Thank you Stevie.”

“You owe me double now, I wasn’t expecting snow shoveling to come with all this emotional baggage.”

They finished shoveling out Patrick’s car and headed inside to put the shovel and broom away and lock up the store. 

“Bob’s probably finished plowing the motel parking lot by now if you want to take your car.” Stevie suggested.

They drove the short distance to the motel. The world was slowly returning to normal and a few other cars were out on the road.

At the motel, Stevie went back to the office to see what damage Mr. Rose had done in her absence while Patrick headed towards David’s room. Before he could get there, however, the door to the motel office opened and Mr. Rose emerged. As always, he looked like he should be heading out for a day on Wall Street instead of a day behind the desk at the motel. 

“Patrick. Moira said that you had gotten stuck here because of the snow. You’re not opening the store today?”

“No, there’s hardly anybody braving the weather. Even the cafe is closed.”

“You know, back the in Rose Video days, we never closed because of the weather.”

“Oh, I’m aware. There were a couple of times I got called into work when I definitely shouldn’t have been driving.”

“Well,” Mr Rose replied, “It looks like it all turned out alright in the end.”

“I guess it did,” Patrick replied, remembering how angry his parents had been when he’d had to go to work during a particularly nasty snowstorm. 

He opened the door to David’s room to find him lying on his bed reading a magazine. 

“Everything okay at the store?”

“Yup and Stevie and I got the car out. I’m going to head back to my place, I could use a shower and some clean clothes. Are you coming?”

David grimaced. “I’ve been told my presence is required at a family dinner this evening. I’ll see you at the store tomorrow?”

Patrick bent over the bed to give David a kiss. David tugged on his arms, overbalancing Patrick so that he landed on top of him. David slid his hands inside of Patrick’s unzipped winter coat.

“Mmm, you’re lovely and warm,” he murmured. 

Patrick leaned on his elbows and cupped David’s face in his hands. He kissed him gently at first and then more eagerly as David responded. Under his coat, David wrapped his arms around Patrick’s waist, pulling him closer. 

“If I don’t leave right now, your family’s going to get an awful shock when they come to get you for dinner,” Patrick said after a few minutes had passed.

“I don’t care,” David said, reaching for Patrick again. “And they won’t be that shocked.” 

Patrick took a deep breath. “I’ll see you tomorrow,” he said, giving David a final kiss on the lips. 

After his shower, Patrick put the leftover lasagna into the microwave. Despite the fact that he and David weren’t officially living together, what had started as three or four nights a week had become a regular thing. Now, without him, the apartment seemed strangely quiet.

He turned on the TV to see that the Leafs were playing the Bruins. He hadn't seen a game in ages. He could sometimes persuade David to watch baseball, but hockey was out of the question. Even though the game was close, he found his thoughts returning to his earlier conversation with Stevie.

He had never really thought about what David’s life had been like before coming to Schitt’s Creek, he realized. Hearing him talk about lavish Christmas parties or expensive vacations was similar to watching a show on TV, it was so far outside of Patrick’s experience that it had never seemed real. Maybe that was why seeing David’s clothes had affected him so much. A rundown motel room filled with thousands of dollars of designer clothing was a real, tangible connection to the person David used to be and maybe still was. 

Before he could think it through, he pulled out his phone and did something that he’d never done before. Opening Google he typed “David Rose” into the search bar. Hundreds of photos filled his screen. David with men and women, at parties, on the beach, at a club. David wearing countless different pieces of clothing, in an astounding array of black and white patterns. He paused briefly over one particularly sexy photo of David wearing a black leather jacket that he remembered seeing in the motel room before he continued to scroll. 

As he absorbed the endless list of the photos, he slowly realized how defensive David looked in each one. More often than not, he stood with his arms folded, the sardonic smile that Patrick loved was missing, replaced by narrowed eyes and an otherwise expressionless face. Whether David knew it or not, Patrick thought, the man he saw in those photos was not the one he shared his life and bed with nearly every night.

Closing the web browser, he texted David.

8:46 pm How was dinner?  
**8:46 pm Alexis is organizing another Adopt-a-thon for Ted**  
**8:47 pm Apparently there will be a runway fashion show for dogs**  
8:47 pm Sounds fun  
8:48 pm I miss you tonight  
**8:48 pm Me too**  
**8:50 pm Why are we spending the night apart?**  
8:52 pm We’re together almost all the time, your family deserves to see you once and awhile  
**8:54 pm They won’t see me if I’m sleeping**  
8:56 pm If you’re sleeping, you won’t know I’m not there  
**8:57 pm That is definitely not true**  
9:00 pm Goodnight David I love you  
**9:01 pm I love you too**

Patrick put down his phone and tried to remember the last night that he and David had spent apart. Had it been when the Roses went to see Mrs. Rose and the Jazzagals perform in Elmdale? Patrick had a cold that night, so he’d decided to stay home. And before that there was the night that Alexis had convinced David to go to a small business reception with her. Thinking back, he thought there might have been half a dozen nights over the past six months when he and David hadn’t been together. 

“Huh,” he said to himself as he got into empty bed and turned out the light.

**FRIDAY**

As usual, Patrick was the first one at the store in the morning. He turned on the lights and did a quick tour to make sure that nothing was out of place or needed to be restocked. Once everything was in order, he unlocked the door at nine o’clock and brought the store’s laptop to the front counter. He was midway through his email to Mrs. Peterson about their reorder for the scarves and toques when David came in.

“Hey, I thought we should see if Mrs Peterson could do a couple of different colors…” Patrick didn’t get to finish his thought before David was pressing him against the counter, kissing him hungrily. 

Patrick returned David’s kiss happily. They broke apart and he asked “What all this? Where’s my usual good morning kiss on the cheek?”

“I missed you. I don’t like waking up when you’re not there.”

“I missed you too. Fortunately, we get to spend the entire day together.”

“Working. That’s not what I missed.”

Patrick grinned. “Maybe when we get home tonight, you can tell me all the things you missed.”

“Or, I could tell you now...” David began as the front bell jingled, announcing the arrival of their first customers of the day.

The store was unusually busy, probably due to their closure the day before. The day flew by and Patrick only had time to finish his email to Mrs. Peterson before he was kept busy with a stream of walk-in customers. When the last customer had left and they locked the door behind them, Patrick could tell that David was as ready as he was to head home. 

At the apartment, they finished dinner and Patrick started on the dishes. It never failed to surprise him how times like this with his often dramatic boyfriend could feel so domestic. 

“Did you bring the phone charger home from the store?”

“Mmm, should be in the pocket of my parka,” Patrick replied. Behind him, he heard David open the closet door.

“Do you find it?” Patrick turned to see David holding the key from the motel that Stevie had given him. He was about to make a joke, when he saw the look on David’s face. Eyes narrowed, face expressionless, just like the photos Patrick had found online. Patrick braced himself, thinking David was angry about his discovery of his clothing.

“I always assumed you’d get tired of me,” David said, his voice flat and resigned. “But I never thought you were the type of person who would cheat on me.”

“What?!” Patrick exclaimed. “David…”

David placed the key on the table and was backing away, his arms crossed tightly over his chest. “If you’d changed your mind about wanting an open relationship, then you should have told me. It’s okay. You deserve someone less dramatic, less needy.” David’s back hit the closet door and he stopped moving, his eyes glued to the key.

“David, stop.” Patrick knew that his words could change everything if they weren’t enough. “Listen to me. I don’t want an open relationship.”

“Yes, that is a key to a room at the motel, but it’s not what you think. When Stevie and I were shoveling, she showed me around the storage room at the motel. Imagine how surprised I was to discover that the storage room contains a one of a kind collection of black and white clothing.”

“So I asked Stevie if I could borrow the key and she gave it to me.”

“Why would you do that?”

“I don’t know. I felt like I’d discovered some other part of you that I didn’t know about. Taking the key made it real.”

David had uncrossed his arms and he was fidgeting with the rings on his right hand. The blank unhappy look remained on his face.

“I don’t think you would like the person who wore most of those clothes.”

Patrick moved so that he was standing in front of David. Gently, he reached out and put his hands on David’s shoulders. “I don’t care about who you were, I care about who you are now.”

“I don’t deserve you,” David replied, but his defensiveness was fading. “And you are not allowed to to do things like this that scare me.”

“C’mere,” Patrick said, pulling David into an embrace. David wrapped his arms around Patrick’s shoulders and buried his face in Patrick’s neck. 

They stood together for a long moment before Patrick asked, “Do you miss it?”

“Miss what?” David asked, confused.

“Miss all the people you used to be with. Miss the parties and the traveling. Miss being able to go home with anyone you want. Miss the...variety?” Patrick kept his tone light, not wanting to betray how important the answer was to him. 

“Patrick…I don’t want to be anywhere else. Yes, I’ve done lots of things and been with lots of people but none of them cared about me and I didn’t care about them, not really. They wanted me because I had money and I wanted them because I could pretend that I wasn’t alone.” 

“Everyone wanted my money and the lifestyle that it could buy but I never had a conversation with anyone I was with that wasn’t about a party we’d been to or the latest gossip.”

“I was surrounded by people but I was completely alone. I didn’t know how fucking lonely I was until I came here and met you.”

“Do I miss it? I hated myself, I hated the people I was with. So, no, I don’t miss it.”

Patrick looked David in the eye. He needed to ask the question that he’d been thinking about since last night.

“Move in with me.”

“What? You know I couldn’t fit a quarter of my clothes in this apartment.”

“I don’t care, we’ll figure it out. You practically live here anyway. Move in with me.”

“I…” Patrick could see from the look on David’s face that he was still conflicted.

“Other than last night, can you remember the last time you didn’t stay over with me?”

David shook his head, “It must have meant something horrible happened, so I’ve probably blocked it out of my memory.”

“I think it was when you and your family went to Elmdale and I stayed home because I was sick.” Patrick replied. “That was over six weeks ago. I’m not asking you to do anything differently than we have been for the past few months. I’m just asking you to make it official. Say that you live here and not at the motel.”

“In that case, yes, I will move in with you,” A wide smile spread across David’s face. “We’re going to need to negotiate visitation rights for my clothes, though.”

“It’s a deal. There’s just one more thing I need to know,” Patrick murmured.

“Mmm hmm?”

“What will it take to get you to wear that black leather jacket for me?”


End file.
